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On hearing the result of Hermod’s mission, the
gods made proclamation throughout the world,
beseeching all created things to weep for Baldur’s
deliverance. All complied with this request;
both men and animals, all, even to the savage
beasts of the forest, shed tears for the hero. The
trees and plants shed crystal drops like rain, and
even the rocks and stones were covered with a
[Pg 251]
glittering dew. One old hag only, sat in a cavern,
and refused to weep, saying,

Funeral of Baldur.

Ans. Baldur’s body was borne to the sea-shore,
and placed upon a funeral pile which was built
of his own ship, the largest in the world. All
the gods were present, and even the Frost and
Mountain Giants were touched with kindness and
came to do him honor. When the wife of Baldur
saw the funeral pile prepared, she died of grief,
and her body was consumed with that of her
husband.

Loki’s Punishment.

Ques. How did the gods revenge the death of
Baldur?

Ans. They pursued Loki, who made use of his
magical power to escape their wrath. He changed
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himself at one time into a salmon, and hid
among the stones of a brook. He was taken,
however, by Thor, who caught him by the tail,
and compressed it so, that all salmons ever since
have had that part remarkably thin. Being restored
to his natural form, Loki was bound with
chains in a gloomy cavern. A serpent was suspended
over his head, whose venom falls upon his
face drop by drop. One comfort is allowed him;
his wife Siguna sits by his side, and catches the
drops as they fall, in a cup; but when she carries
it away to empty it, the venom falls upon Loki,
which makes him howl with horror, and twist his
body so violently that the whole earth shakes.

The Elves.

Ques. Who were the Elves?

Ans. They were beautiful spirits, clothed in
transparent and delicate garments. They loved
the light, and were kindly disposed to mankind.
The country of the Elves was called Alfheim, and
was the domain of Freyr, the god of the sun, in
whose light they were always sporting.

Ques. Were all the fairies equally beneficent?

Ans. No; the Night Elves, also called Gnomes,
and sometimes Brownies, were at times exceedingly
malicious. They were ugly, long-nosed
dwarfs of a dark brown complexion, and were
never seen except at night, because the sun’s rays
had the power of changing them into stones.

Ques. Where did these dwell?

[Pg 253]Ans. The Gnomes dwelt in mountain caverns
and the clefts of rocks. They were particularly
distinguished for their knowledge of the mysterious
powers of nature. They were also skillful
workers in wood and metal, and were acquainted
with the secret stores of gold and silver which the
gods had hidden in the earth. Many stories are
related of their malicious pranks; but they sometimes
favored the poor and friendless in an unexpected
manner.

The principal works of the Gnomes were Thor’s
hammer, and the ship Skidbladnir. This vessel
was so wonderfully wrought, that while it was
large enough to carry all the deities with their
war and household implements, it could be folded
together so small as to be carried in the hand.

Runic Letters.

Ques. What are Runic letters?

Ans. One may occasionally meet in Norway,
Denmark, or Sweden with great stones of different
forms, engraven with characters called Runic,
which appear, at first sight, very different from
any letters we know. They consist almost invariably
of straight lines in the shape of little sticks,
either single or in groups. Divination was anciently
practiced among the northern nations by
means of sticks of different lengths. These were
shaken up, and from the chance figures they
formed, the priests predicted future events.
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When alphabetic writing was introduced, the letters
naturally took the form of the ancient runes.
The magic verses were of various kinds. The
noxious, or, as they were called, the bitter runes
were recited to bring evils on their enemies; the
favorable averted misfortune; some were medicinal,
others employed to win love, etc. In later
times, the runes were used for inscriptions, of
which more than a thousand have been found.

The language is a dialect of the Gothic, called
Norse, still in use in Iceland. The inscriptions
may, therefore, be read with certainty; but they
throw very little light on history, being principally
epitaphs on tombstones.

Ragnarok, the Twilight of the Gods.

It was a firm belief of the northern nations,
that a time would come when all the visible creation,
the gods of Valhalla, the inhabitants of
earth, men, giants and elves, would be destroyed,
together with their habitations.

This fearful day will not be without its forerunners.
First will come a triple winter, during
which clouds of snow, driven by piercing winds
from the four quarters of the heavens, will fall
unceasingly on the earth; tempests will sweep
the sea, and the sun will impart neither heat nor
gladness. Three such winters will pass away
without being tempered by a single summer.
[Pg 255]
Three other winters will then follow, during
which war and discord will convulse the universe.
The solid earth will tremble, the sea will leave its
bed, and the heavens will be rent asunder.